He retired a year ago after 42 years with Cestari Metallurgical Industries, and his memory still lives on. The company still misses him, and Juan Manuel Reynoso hasn’t forgotten the factory. In this article, he recalls some moments from his time with Cestari.
“I started on the first business day of January 1977 and left at the end of June 2019, so I worked for exactly 42 years of my life. I’m fond of mathematics and I like it, so I spent exactly 60% of my life working at Cestari,” Juan Manuel Reynoso begins this note, adding: “So, look, Cestari is important to me, fundamental, my whole life.”
Cestari marks the lives of its people and employees. And the employees have undoubtedly marked the life of our company over these 92 years. This is the case of Juan Manuel, who is now enjoying his retirement but remains in contact with us and today tells us his story with Cestari.
How were your beginnings at the factory?
When I joined, we had a few employees, a few suppliers, and clients exclusively from the province of Buenos Aires, with whom Nino dealt. At that time, I was in charge of keeping the accounts, keeping the cash register by hand, which was then entered into the journal. We did everything ourselves: paying taxes, pension contributions, all of those things. We were fewer people, simpler than today, everything was done manually.
Among the tasks Juan Manuel Reynoso performed, we can name many. At times, he was an administrator, at times, he sold hoppers, and he even managed transportation. “Among the things I did, except for purchasing, which was always Nino’s responsibility, and when Horacio came in, he took over, or the technical part, I’ve done everything. I even transported hoppers, made trips with 12-ton hoppers, from Buenos Aires, Santa Fe, and La Pampa, to Tucumán,” he says.
“Little by little, I ended up doing what I did until the last moment: invoicing, dispatching trailers, dealing with dealers, clients who, possibly over so many years, considered me part of the company, born with the company,” Juan Manuel proudly says.
What was your relationship like with your colleagues?
– Regarding my colleagues, I’ve never really had any problems with anyone. I’ve always had a very good relationship with everyone, from the office and the workshop. Marcelo Giuli was a pillar of strength, because he was always there, from the beginning, supporting me in everything, knowing everything, and understanding everything. Then, with the implementation of the new directives related to the ISO standard and other matters, where he began to take on management duties, he continued to support me. Marcelo is a super-capable guy, an excellent person, with whom I always had an excellent relationship.
How was your relationship with the company?
Nino always said that Cestari was a great family. And you also gradually become part of that, because after 42 years, if you’re not a family, you can’t stand it. Like any family, there are good times and not-so-good times. I can tell you about the not-so-good times: Nino was very strict with schedules, for example, so I was afraid to ask for permission to go to the doctor, or to go out for a walk.
But there are thousands of good times, from the financial help they’ve given me many times, to the time I remember most, when my son came down with scarlet fever, and the doctor in Pergamino told us he had to send him to Rosario. There, Néstor brought me his car with fuel and everything so I could go to Rosario. He almost forced me to go. Thanks to that, we saved my son.
Also, the beautiful farewell gift they gave me. Those are the good things, and that’s most of them. That’s why I tell you, yes, it’s a great family.
Juan Manuel Reynoso was part of Industrias Metalúrgicas Cestari for the last 42 years and can tell you about every process, from the first hoppers to the latest developments. He was also part of difficult times for Argentine companies, where our factory developed strategies to move forward, providing quality and efficiency in its products, always thinking about maintaining jobs above all else.
“That line of conduct, that honesty, that standing up for yourself, always characterized the family and the company, and it extended to the employees, to us. Because, for example, it was almost a guarantee, going into a business or a store, taking out a loan or asking for something, and you say, ‘I work at Cestari.’ People knew that if you worked at Cestari, you were first and foremost a good employee, and if Cestari hired you, it was because you were a good person,” he says proudly.
“We imagine you have many anecdotes…
There are thousands of anecdotes, imagine so many years of work. One I always remember is that Don Nino didn’t like us drinking mate; he didn’t want to. But anyway, we managed to have some mates. When he left, we would take out the yerba mate and the mate and drink mates secretly. When Nino appeared through the large front gate, they quickly put everything away.” But Nino would come and touch the hot kettle and storm off. We all thought of a trick: when we heated the water, we would cool everything down so he wouldn’t notice. But Nino, the old fox, wanted to find proof, and one day, instead of appearing through the front door, he appeared through the back door and caught us drinking mate… I told him Nestor was with us, and that’s why we were spared a bigger challenge.
Thousands of stories and anecdotes were left out of this article. Juan Manuel Reynoso was and is an important part of our history. His willingness and emotion when telling us his story with Cestari demonstrates this. And we are happy to be able to share it.
Juan Manuel Reynoso and his memories in Cestari
He retired a year ago after 42 years with Cestari Metallurgical Industries, and his memory still lives on. The company still misses him, and Juan Manuel Reynoso hasn’t forgotten the factory. In this article, he recalls some moments from his time with Cestari.
“I started on the first business day of January 1977 and left at the end of June 2019, so I worked for exactly 42 years of my life. I’m fond of mathematics and I like it, so I spent exactly 60% of my life working at Cestari,” Juan Manuel Reynoso begins this note, adding: “So, look, Cestari is important to me, fundamental, my whole life.”
Cestari marks the lives of its people and employees. And the employees have undoubtedly marked the life of our company over these 92 years. This is the case of Juan Manuel, who is now enjoying his retirement but remains in contact with us and today tells us his story with Cestari.
How were your beginnings at the factory?
When I joined, we had a few employees, a few suppliers, and clients exclusively from the province of Buenos Aires, with whom Nino dealt. At that time, I was in charge of keeping the accounts, keeping the cash register by hand, which was then entered into the journal. We did everything ourselves: paying taxes, pension contributions, all of those things. We were fewer people, simpler than today, everything was done manually.
Among the tasks Juan Manuel Reynoso performed, we can name many. At times, he was an administrator, at times, he sold hoppers, and he even managed transportation. “Among the things I did, except for purchasing, which was always Nino’s responsibility, and when Horacio came in, he took over, or the technical part, I’ve done everything. I even transported hoppers, made trips with 12-ton hoppers, from Buenos Aires, Santa Fe, and La Pampa, to Tucumán,” he says.
“Little by little, I ended up doing what I did until the last moment: invoicing, dispatching trailers, dealing with dealers, clients who, possibly over so many years, considered me part of the company, born with the company,” Juan Manuel proudly says.
What was your relationship like with your colleagues?
– Regarding my colleagues, I’ve never really had any problems with anyone. I’ve always had a very good relationship with everyone, from the office and the workshop. Marcelo Giuli was a pillar of strength, because he was always there, from the beginning, supporting me in everything, knowing everything, and understanding everything. Then, with the implementation of the new directives related to the ISO standard and other matters, where he began to take on management duties, he continued to support me. Marcelo is a super-capable guy, an excellent person, with whom I always had an excellent relationship.
How was your relationship with the company?
Nino always said that Cestari was a great family. And you also gradually become part of that, because after 42 years, if you’re not a family, you can’t stand it. Like any family, there are good times and not-so-good times. I can tell you about the not-so-good times: Nino was very strict with schedules, for example, so I was afraid to ask for permission to go to the doctor, or to go out for a walk.
But there are thousands of good times, from the financial help they’ve given me many times, to the time I remember most, when my son came down with scarlet fever, and the doctor in Pergamino told us he had to send him to Rosario. There, Néstor brought me his car with fuel and everything so I could go to Rosario. He almost forced me to go. Thanks to that, we saved my son.
Also, the beautiful farewell gift they gave me. Those are the good things, and that’s most of them. That’s why I tell you, yes, it’s a great family.
Juan Manuel Reynoso was part of Industrias Metalúrgicas Cestari for the last 42 years and can tell you about every process, from the first hoppers to the latest developments. He was also part of difficult times for Argentine companies, where our factory developed strategies to move forward, providing quality and efficiency in its products, always thinking about maintaining jobs above all else.
“That line of conduct, that honesty, that standing up for yourself, always characterized the family and the company, and it extended to the employees, to us. Because, for example, it was almost a guarantee, going into a business or a store, taking out a loan or asking for something, and you say, ‘I work at Cestari.’ People knew that if you worked at Cestari, you were first and foremost a good employee, and if Cestari hired you, it was because you were a good person,” he says proudly.
“We imagine you have many anecdotes…
There are thousands of anecdotes, imagine so many years of work. One I always remember is that Don Nino didn’t like us drinking mate; he didn’t want to. But anyway, we managed to have some mates. When he left, we would take out the yerba mate and the mate and drink mates secretly. When Nino appeared through the large front gate, they quickly put everything away.” But Nino would come and touch the hot kettle and storm off. We all thought of a trick: when we heated the water, we would cool everything down so he wouldn’t notice. But Nino, the old fox, wanted to find proof, and one day, instead of appearing through the front door, he appeared through the back door and caught us drinking mate… I told him Nestor was with us, and that’s why we were spared a bigger challenge.
Thousands of stories and anecdotes were left out of this article. Juan Manuel Reynoso was and is an important part of our history. His willingness and emotion when telling us his story with Cestari demonstrates this. And we are happy to be able to share it.